I Should End In Prayer...

"Jesus told them another parable: 'The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared. The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?' 'An enemy did this,' he replied. The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?' 'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'" Matthew 13:24-30

Lord, we realize that there are those among the Church who are there for various motives. We pray that your Spirit would convict and convert these souls that are either deceptive or themselves deceived about their position with you. Make it clear and distinct in their hearts, which only You can do.

And God, protect your sheep! Keep them aware. Don't let them be harmed. Give them your wisdom and let their eyes be open. Surround them with godly counsel, men and women who have walked with you and watched their lives.

Most of all, for all of us who love your name, Jesus, we ask that you would come quickly! We know that these things must be, and that as the time comes for your return, that they will happen with greater frequency. Lord, come; make us long for your righteousness and ultimate vindication where you will separate the righteous unto yourself, where we will never be threatened or deceived again. Lord, let those who have been hurt and betrayed, look forward with greater anticipation to your final vindication of their cases and give them patience today to wait for you to bring that to pass.

It's in Jesus name that I ask these things,

Amen.

Blessings...To Our Friends,
Frank Sanchez

This Is Going To Be Long!

Hello All,

I warn you now that this post has been roughly 3 years in the making. If you want to take this post off and come back in a few days for the usual Frank & Lela fare, I would not blame you one bit. I have been mulling and musing over a verse for a few weeks now that has really stuck with me and has been a culmination of a lot of events that had just not made sense to me. I admit that what I am about to write will likely be disputed and I am comfortable enough to say that there may be exceptions, but what I am thinking about is more likely the rule.

I'll begin with the verse in question. Matthew 24, the Olivet Discourse and Jesus answering three eschatological questions. Somewhere after He has talked about wars, earthquakes, etc., He makes an interesting comment.

"And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." Matthew 24:12, KJV

For whatever reason this verse has come up into my spirit quite often over the last 6 months as I watch believer after believer walk away from life long commitments to follow after their flesh. It began around Christmas time 06', when someone we believed would never fall from grace, decided that she did not want to be married any longer. Then just a few weeks later, another situation and set of people, but the same result: He did not want to be married any longer. Add to this 4 or 5 other situations just like it and you see where I am going. In most cases, the one left behind remains a solid believer, looking to do anything to right the situation.

Let me go further with you. What implications does this verse have when applied to the love that we are to have for God? Look over at Revelation 2 and the letter from Christ to the Ephesian church. Jesus notes all of these external attributes, like perseverance, good works, etc., but then says in some of the most almighty words ever spoken:

"Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love." Revelation 2:4

The note there is that church had become all about the external appearance and doing instead of being. Outwardly all appeared normal and worthy of applause. The world would look and recognize that this was a distinctive church, yet Jesus, the one whose opinion actually matters, says that He sees a busy church lacking the one thing that He desires: Love!

Going back to the original thought. Because of sin, the love of many will wax (grow) cold. It would seem then, that these people had the love to begin with, but began toying with sin, thus choking out the love for Christ and His people. This is certainly valid.

Yet, something still strikes me as odd. People can call themselves Christians all day long and NOT BE! Going back to Matthew, chapter 25 in our Bibles, but the same address, Jesus talks about separating sheep and goats, both of whom are allowed to live side by side, yet the goats are removed and set apart for judgment.

What is my point? Is there a falling away? Yes, it's happening right now. Believers are turning away from Christ, people who you never thought would. On the other hand, let's remember that there are goats around us as we speak. We can not discern who they are, so it's not our business to make any final judgement calls, but the fruits are quite evident.

• A definitive lack of repentance toward sin.

• A lack of desire for the Word of God to be applied and obeyed.

• A feelings based (sensual), subjective approach to their own circumstance.

These are but a few. Why do I write this? I admit that the people who have walked away from people that they covenanted with, make me angry, with a righteous anger that I might have toward the likes of Judas Iscariot! How dare they betray trust and sacrifice precious people on the basis of their fleeting feelings and sin obsessions! Having heard another story like this this very evening adds fuel to this fire.

But my other reason is to call true believers to look for more than our pithy cultural standards for Christian behavior. Look for true marks of one who believes. A person who is faithful to God's Word, at all times, despite what he or she feels would be one worth inviting in. Someone who is genuinely disgusted by their sin, no matter how "big" or "little" it is, would be a good friend. Someone who wants nothing more than to know God's Word and live it, fully obedient, would be a person that I would admire.

Instead what the church has been guilty of is looking at whether a person is nice, has a good family name, and doesn't cuss or listen to secular music! Our criteria is way off and we avoid it to our peril. Christians, there are WOLVES ALL AROUND YOU! DISCERN!

I, in no way, want to alienate those who have entered into a covenant relationship, only later to be deceived and betrayed. There is no condemnation here, nor do I hold you responsible for the person who might have blindsided you with their deception. Instead, because you exist, my heart goes out to anyone who might be in for the same heart ache, I beg Christians to BENEFIT from your terrible experience, and be as wise and discerning as possible, so as to MINIMIZE the risk involved in any relationship. INVESTIGATE, BE PATIENT, TEST, and WAIT FOR GOD to confirm and ONLY MOVE FORWARD WHEN THERE IS PEACE ON EVERY SIDE!

Please forgive me for this rant. I think of all the wonderful people that I know and love, who I saw marry or enter into a relationship with, only to be betrayed and cast aside like a worn out possession that gave no further pleasure. I think of them and wish that something could have been seen or done before damage was done. On the other hand, there are those that I love right now, who are on the verge of the same precipice, who perhaps are entering in without a discerning spirit. It's also for them that I take this space and beg for thoughtfulness in this area.

Christian Culture is not enough to sustain a godly life; Only conversion of the soul and being can make that a reality! Listening to the right music does not make you a Christian. Avoiding certain behaviors does not make you a Christian. ONLY CHRIST CAN MAKE YOU (DECLARE YOU) A CHRISTIAN!

In these last days, deception will be the order of the day. False prophets, false believers, false doctrines will abound. Let us who belong to Christ, who are manifesting the daily proofs of genuine conversion, cling closely to Jesus, keeping our eyes fixed upon Him, the Author and Finisher of our faith.

There...now I can get back to our usual fare!

Blessings...To Our Friends,
Frank Sanchez

Hymns, iPods & Car Washes!

Hello All,

I was cleaning out the car, readying myself for the early morning commute. On my iPod was the newest album from Fernando Ortega, "The Shadow Of Your Wings, Hymns and Sacred Songs." At the end of the vacuuming, the song Crown Him With Many Crowns came on. As is usual, Fernando's rich symphonic arrangement caught my ear, but then the words just filled my spirit with praise to the Lord. I wanted to share the words with you at least.

Crown Him with many crowns, the Lamb upon His throne.
Hark! How the heavenly anthem drowns all music but its own.
Awake, my soul, and sing of Him who died for thee,
And hail Him as thy matchless King through all eternity.

Crown Him the Lord of love, behold His hands and side,
Those wounds, yet visible above, in beauty glorified.
No angel in the sky can fully bear that sight,
But downward bends his burning eye at mysteries so bright.

Crown Him the Lord of life, who triumphed over the grave,
And rose victorious in the strife for those He came to save.
His glories now we sing, Who died, and rose on high,
Who died eternal life to bring, and lives that death may die.

Crown Him the Lord of years, the Potentate of time,
Creator of the rolling spheres, ineffably sublime.
All hail, Redeemer, hail! For Thou has died for me;
Thy praise and glory shall not fail throughout eternity.

These hymns blow your mind spiritually when you read them alone. The theology is brilliant across the board and it's rare to find GOOD arrangements that can be put into a contemporary setting, so it's my highest endorsement to recommend Fernando's albums, because he always does an excellent job of fusing the two together. The other hyms album that Fernando produced, "Hymns and Meditations" is also worth the investment.

One day, I want to do a night of hymns with my favorite musicians and invite a whole group of people to come out and sing these wonderful professions of faith, perhaps in a living room near you.

These songs are our heritage and teach us the wonder of God. I hope that you will be able to come to an appreciation of them as I have. Some of you may even want to buy a hymnal and just read it. I have 3 or 4 that I have collected and I love reading through them.

For now though, check out Fernando's efforts to bring attention to these magnificent songs of faith. I can't imagine you would be sorry.

Blessings...To Our Friends,
Frank Sanchez

We Got The Pirate Thing Right This Time!